"No surprise, then, that the truth of what happens in laptop-rich schools is far more shades of gray than black or white." ~ Larry Cuban
Questions: Can 1-to-1 sometimes get in the way of collaborative, hands-on learning? Are there times that it is better to focus students' efforts on a single screen? When is face-to-face collaboration and social interaction more powerful than independent digital access and production?
Jamie McKenzie: Over-Equipped? Is it possible to have too many laptops?
Some common sense observations were noted during the round table discussion. Common sense doesn't discount the value of the observations, though, because common sense is not all that common.
There may be hope after all for the DOE, if they stick with their valuable observations. Read more here.
One simple trick to better school culture is looping. Why is it so rare? I find it the best strategy. Kids know the teacher, the teacher knows the kids, they have lots of shared experiences by the second year, it doesn't cost any money, as Duncan pointed out; teachers are accountable by default, students are accountable and more aware of their behavior, parents are no strangers; trust is established. Why would you not do it?
Today there is much talk, especially in schools, about how can we trust the tons of information that exists in society today. Hours upon hours are spent discussing validity and reliability of information. Pages of text are being published every day on the topic of trusting information sources and evaluating right from wrong. In schools, the debates rage on about what sources schools can or should use and which should not be allowed. Interestingly enough, there are schools that block sites strictly because individuals locally have deemed the site “too untrustworthy for students to use” (Wikipedia anyone?) Many fret over a perceived dilemma that with increased access to information, our children need even more skills to determine the worth and validity of that information. This anxiety is completely misplaced. Instead of concentrating on increased access, too many resources or any perceived need for more accurate information, we should be in uproar about the almost complete collapse of inquiry, discovery and discussion in our institutions and lack of family structures that support learning!...
I've come to realize that one of the most important skills that we can develop is the ability to determine if the information we hear and see is valid. Are we teaching kids how to do this?
This past week my colleagues pointed me to a Video about a new initiative in New Brunswick, Canada, which uses the Partnership of 21st Learning framework.
Pearson Foundation created this next video to describe the approach.
Maine joined the Partnership in 2007. The Stategic Council members can be found here. Note that Microsoft is one of them and that Pearson is a major influence.
Okay, now it starts to get interesting. This week Common Core, an organization not to be confused with the Common Core State Standards group, although Fordham Foundation seems to be connected with both, has issued the Common Core Curriculum Maps which are based on the new CCSS. Find the donors here. Note that Gates Foundation is a major contributor.
Now it starts to get very, very interesting. It seems that Common Core has been slamming the Partnership for 21st Skills for the past year, bringing out lots of big guns, including Diane Ravitch and a number of well-known commentators who seem to support a more classical education.
Interesting stuff . . . the culture wars continue, but Gates/Microsoft and Pearson seem to be supporting both sides.
New Brunswick seems to have sided with the P21 approach. What should Maine do?
Any thoughts? Which approach do you prefer? Or is there a middle ground?
About 5000 Maine children in kindergarten through the twelfth grade were homeschooled during the 2009-10 school year. That's more than 2.5% of the state's school-age population and a 41% increase since 2002-03. It's likely homeschool numbers will continue to swell. Traditionally parents have chosen to teach their children at home for three primary, yet very different, reasons: a desire to provide religious instruction, concerns about the traditional school environment (safety, drugs, bullying, e.g.), and dissatisfaction with the academic instruction provided by public schools. Add to that mix educational constraints like George W. Bush's "No Child Left Behind" legislation, President Obama's "Race to the Top" incentives, and the new Common Core State Standards in Mathematics and English Language Arts, and it's clear why many families have decided to go it alone.
The good news is that Maine homeschoolers now have a place of their own where "families of all spiritual backgrounds and homeschool philosophies" can congregate within a supportive environment to learn and have fun together. The new Midcoast Maine Homeschool Center, located in the Grace Episcopal Church in Bath, is the brainchild of four local homeschool moms. It opens its doors on Wednesday, September 8th, and offers classes for elementary and middle school students in literature, computer skills, art history, sewing, and others. One-to-one and group tutoring and classes like multi-cultural literature and college writing for teens and book making will be offered on Thursdays starting in October. Fridays are set aside for field trips and other specialty classes . Plans are in the works for programs for parents and preschoolers and additional classes for teenagers.
The Midcoast Maine Homeschool Center will hold an open house:
Wednesday, September 1st, from 10 a.m. to noon
Grace Episcopal Church 1100 Washington Street Bath, Maine 04530
At the open house you can meet director, Susan Hyde, the teachers, learn more about the center, and register for fall classes. Children are welcome to attend.
Very often Maine school technology technical staff don't get the respect they deserve. It can be a very frustrating job, with last-minute requests and demands that are constantly arising. Knowing that, I have to say what a delight it is to see the RSU10 technical staff in action. Not only do they have impressive technical skills, but more importantly, they have outstanding people skills. As part of my job as the Western Maine Learning & Technology Mentor, I have experienced the friendly and helpful people who make all the difference in making technology integration work well. RSU10 could very well serve as an excellent example of this work done right. Every year during the Summer Technology Institute I can't help but be awed by the graciousness and patience practiced by this group. One more time, I would like to say "Thank You!"
"Summertime and the Livin' is Easy" ~ Porgy & Bess
It's summertime and our guard is down. What better time for something to be slipped by us! Is that what is happening regarding the issue of network neutrality? The issue, in a nutshell, is whether the Net remains democratic in the sense that there is equal access and equal opportunity to write to it.
Race to the Top grants require CCSS, and there are rumors that the feds might tie Title 1 money to it as well. What is said to be voluntary, in the real world of tight fiscal times, is clearly not. Most states have now come on board along with making major changes in law and policy. And with some greasing of pockets, organizations such as NEA, NFT, ASCD and the PTA have come on board as well.
This was very much a top-down creation with very little real input at the grassroots level or even by national curriculum organizations such as NCTE or NCTM.
Most readers of this blog should know my view on this development by now. I'm very concerned for at least three reasons.
First, I believe President Dwight Eisenhower's observation has great merit.
"A distinguishing characteristic of our nation — and a great strength — is the development of our institutions within the concept of individual worth and dignity. Our schools are among the guardians of that principle. Consequently . . . and deliberately their control and support throughout our history have been — and are — a state and local responsibility. . . . Thus was established a fundamental element of the American public school system — local direction by boards of education responsible immediately to the parents of children. Diffusion of authority among tens of thousands of school districts is a safeguard against centralized control and abuse of the educational system that must be maintained. We believe that to take away the responsibility of communities and states in educating our children is to undermine not only a basic element of our freedoms but a basic right of our citizens. "
I simply don't believe schools controlled by large corporations is in the best interest of democracy. And don't make any mistake about it, this control is reaching a new level of magnitude.
Second, I worry about the type of pedagogy that will be encouraged with the soon-to-be-developed assessments. I've seen the glitzy content management systems being hawked in the vendor areas of state and national conferences. Already, powerful interests are aligning their products with the CCSS. Do we really want learning to be a teacher-in-a-box? It seems to me that there is a great danger that the connections that develop when students are engaged in real life problems in project-based learning will take a big hit if so much importance is given to standardization.
Third, I would argue that standardization is not really the issue. The issue is poverty and income disparity in the United States.
Okay, that's where I stand . . . . but being resigned to the reality, I've created a new wiki (currently under construction) called Learning in America at http://learninginamerica.us in order to index open educational resources to the new standards. If we must have national standardization, then we should at least not become enslaved to large oligopolistic educational publishing outfits. Let's open up the possibilities of local decision making in the methods and resources we use.
Proposed Rule Change for Adoption of Common Core Standards
INFORMATIONAL LETTER: 10 POLICY CODE: ILB
To: Superintendents of Schools
From: Angela Faherty Ph.D, Acting Commissioner
Date: August 2, 2010
RE: Proposed Rule Change for Adoption of Common Core Standards
The Department of Education is proposing an amendment to Chapter 131: The Maine Federal, State and Local Accountability Standards, a Major Substantive Rule of the Department of Education to include the Common Core State Standards in English language arts and mathematics for kindergarten to grade 12, with implementation to begin in 2012-13.
The proposed change is being made pursuant to PL 2009, Chapter 647, which revised state statute to permit Maine’s standards to include a core of standards in English language arts and mathematics for kindergarten to grade 12 established in common with other states and authorized the Commissioner of Education to adopt them, pending final approval by the Legislature.
Maine has a long history as a leader in rigorous standards and assessments and the adoption of the Common Core standards for English language arts and mathematics is the next logical step. The Maine Learning Results standards were first adopted in 1997 and later revised and re-adopted in 2007, each with significant statewide educator involvement and input. A similar process was used in the development of the Common Core standards. Maine educators and Maine Department of Education staff participated significantly in the development and review of the Common Core Standards.We have made clear that Maine would not adopt any standards that are less rigorous than the ones already in place. As a Department we are confident that the Common Core Standards will reflect what students need for success in post-secondary education and careers.
The proposed rule was filed today, August 2, 2010. The Secretary of State will post the rulemaking notice on August 11, 2010. The Department will hold a public hearing on August 30, 2010 in room 500 of the Cross State Office Building from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. The public comment period will begin on August 11 and end on September 10, 2010.
“An important question to ask of any proposed educational innovation is simply this: Is it intended to make the factory run more efficiently, or is it designed, as it should be, to get rid of the factory model altogether and replace it with individualized, customized education?” ~Alvin Toffler
Often, we use words like depression, bi-polar, panicattack, generalizedanxietydisorder, and more to describe normal reactions kids have to life circumstances. This can be dangerous and gives kids the wrong message about life and our ordinary human experience in response to adversity.
For example, a teenager breaks up with her girl friend and is feeling down and dejected. Saying she is “depressed” would be common. Today, it can mean something else—Depression with a capital “D.” In a situation like this, I’ve found it better to stay away from “terminology” and use ordinary words to describe what the kid is going through, rather then telling them they may “have” depression and implying (or actually telling) that they should be thoroughly evaluated.
The girl in our above example was dumped by her friend. She’s upset, hurt, sad, angry, and feeling really down. She probably should be feeling all of that, as well as being confused and feeling poorly about herself. She is going through the normal progression of experience in a typical human circumstance. She needs love, support, hugs, understanding, encouragement, and time.
I’m not pooh-poohing depression or minimizing the potentially devastating impact of clinical depression. But I am trying to bring balance and common sense to our observations of kids going through a hard time and subsequently our communication with them.
My first mentor, Ralph, was a child psychiatrist. He passed on a piece of wisdom over thirty years ago that I carry with me today. Paraphrasing: if you describe in detail the behavior and emotions of any teenager, they will qualify for a mental health diagnosis—and some pretty heavy duty diagnoses at that! Teenagers have mood swings, black and white thinking, irrationality . . . etc. I don’t mean this disparagingly. During adolescence there are enormous body/mind changes which are very unsteadying. Any of us adults in a difficult situation will exhibit many of these behaviors, as well. Drawing diagnostic conclusions, though, can be dangerous—especially with kids
Also, we’ve gotten more detailed and sophisticated in our terminology about human behavior but often at the exclusion of common sense. For example, I’ve found myself using old-fashioned terms like “nervous exhaustion” or “nervous breakdown,” when they seem more accurate and helpful. Other choices like “psychotic break” or “bi-polar disorder” just don’t fit and aren’t helpful, and we can all identify with being in a “slump” or “down in the dumps.”
Connecting with others in distress by being patient and emotionally supportive is the first order of business. Expressing kindness and understanding are always helpful, even if it doesn’t have an immediate, discernable impact. Knowing someone cares makes a big difference. It’s simple but true. And communicating using simple, descriptive language is always the best medicine.
"The most useful thing Congress and state departments of education can do is abandon authoritarian, centralizing initiatives and legislation that dictate what’s taught. By propping up an obsolete, dysfunctional curriculum, they’re making a very bad situation much worse. ~ Marion Brady, Truthout, June 25, 2010
"The 'standards and accountability' education reform effort began in the 1980s at the urging of leaders of business and industry. The reform message preached by Democrats, Republicans, and the mainstream media is simple. 1. America's schools are, at best, mediocre. 2. Teachers deserve most of the blame. 3. As a corrective, rigorous subject-matter standards and tests are essential. 4. Bringing market forces to bear will pressure teachers to meet the standards or choose some other line of work.
Competition - student against student, teacher against teacher, school against school, state against state, nation against nation - will yield the improvement necessary for the United States to finish in first place internationally." ~ Marion Brady, Truthout.
Welcome to this community blog. We invite you to collaborate with us by sharing your thoughts, beliefs, ideas and resources. At the top find a custom search engine, and below a chronological archive of past posts and an alphabetical index. If you would like to be a "writer," being able to compose original posts, simply send a request to JBurkeMaine@gmail.com and an invitation will then be made.
Learning in Maine is a community blog to share ideas about learning and resources that might be helpful to others. Everyone can make comments on posts. If you would like to be a "writer," being able to compose original posts, simply send a request to JBurkeMaine@gmail.com and an invitation will then be made.
If you have questions or notice an issue, you may write to either of the two admins:
